Utility of fluorescence in situ hybridisation (FISH) in diagnosis and therapy of ocular melanocytic lesions.

A first aim of the project is to determine the role of c-KIT gene amplification in uveal melanocytic lesions. Since there is a targeted designed treatment directed against c-KIT (by STI571 or Imatinib), this part of the study can have important therapeutic implications for uveal melanocytic lesions. The second part of the study uses 4 FISH probes that have been proven to be of diagnostic value in cutaneous melanoma and that help in determining whether these lesions are either benign or malignant. This project will study the role of these 4 melanoma FISH probes in the diagnosis of conjunctival melanocytic lesions. This could be helpful in determining lesions that are difficult to classify based on pathologic examination, such as Primary Acquired Melanosis (PAM).